Creating Community One Cupcake at a Time

From the minute you enter the sky blue and white space that's home to Irvington's year-old The Cupcake Kitchen and Luncheonette it's obvious that someone has paid very close attention to every single detail.

Think "Pleasantville" (the movie, not the village). There's the lunch counter complete with bar stools accented in 1950s-era silvery aluminum--and the tables , all in the blue, white and chrome color scheme that would have been at home in any baby boomer's childhood kitchen. Besides the vintage cookbooks (anyone want to check out icebox cake recipes while waiting for a burger?), the walls feature retro posters and images.

The menu, which leans heavily toward comfort foods, could come straight from a "Happy Days" set: scrambled eggs, omelettes, bagels, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, chicken club sandwiches, tuna and egg salad, and of course, hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken tenders and fries. Plus it's more than okay to sit at a table or at the counter for an egg cream, hot fudge sundae or vanilla split, milkshake or smoothie.

Proust had his madeleine. For baby boomers and their offspring, the road to nostalgia is more likely to make its way through burgers and fries, or a root beer float, proving that the prosaic can be just as magical as a French delicacy.

"We wanted something that feels good and is retro," says owner and creator, Jennifer O'Connell, who launched the business in May 2009.

O'Connell's eye for detail in conjuring that innocent past isn't surprising, considering that her previous career was as a director of design for an intimate apparel firm. Working with food wasn't such a reach, either, since O'Connell started out at Albright College in nutrition before ultimately earning her degree in art and design.

Despite her high powered job, O'Connell—now a married mother of two children, both of whom attend the Dows Lane school --was weary of the endless road trips. She wanted to do something that would work better for her family, and herself. One of the last straws came when she was in Arkansas for a business trip at Wal-Mart and received a message that 'schools were closed early", leaving her to scramble for child care arrangements.

"What I can I do next?" O'Connell wondered. "I wanted something close to home and community-based."

The Cupcake Kitchen and Luncheonette does precisely that. It's definitely the sweet stuff of kids' (and adults who like to revisit their favorite childhood treats) fantasies. The baked-on-the-premises cupcakes, piled high with just-so-swirled frosting, come in traditional flavors like chocolate, vanilla and strawberry, as well as chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting, vanilla coconut, or carrot cake with cream-cheese icing, among many other possibilities.

But what O'Connell is really dishing up is the ultimate village gathering spot. Local mothers stop by after a morning of tennis or yoga. Nursery school parents and children pop in after school. Then there are the senior citizens and local Irvington workers who keep the take-out counter busy. Weekends it attracts the pre- and post-soccer crowd, and is a favorite for the after-church group on Sundays. After school, Irvington middle school students flock here en masse, as much for the socializing as for the snacking.

O'Connell is part den mother, part surrogate parent. "I get parents coming in here, saying 'here's $ 10 for my son'," she says. "A lot of moms like that they're here in a safe place."

O'Connell, who was raised in nearby Ardsley and lived in Park Slope before moving to Irvington, modeled The Cupcake Kitchen and Luncheonette, in part, on the casual places she and her husband had discovered during summers in the Hamptons with their young children.

"There was such a nice feel there," said O'Connell. "I wanted something casual and kid-friendly, not an anonymous diner."

 Four years in the planning, O'Connell also drew upon professionals in the industry  as well as her own experiences as a waitress, cook and bartender for such local places at the Chart House in Dobbs Ferry or the Elmsford Dinner Theater.

A vegetarian, O'Connell buys at local farmers' markets whenever possible for produce, adding that "I try to keep everything as fresh and local as possible, to keep things as natural as possible."

While O'Connell has a professional chef in the kitchen, "If we're really busy, I jump in," she said. "I'm very hands-on."

 The Cupcake Kitchen and Luncheonette, 100 Main Street, Irvington: Open Sundays through Wednesdays 8 AM to 6 PM and Thursdays through Saturdays 8 AM to 9 PM: 914-231-6261